What if A Very Supernatural Christmas
by Katy M VT
Summary: What if Sam insisted that they return the gifts that Dean stole.  Takes place from the flashbacks.  Chapter 7 of 7 up.
1. Invitation to Dinner

What if Sam insisted that they return the stolen presents?

"Thanks, Sam, I love it," Dean said in response to Sam's gift of the amulet. He felt a little guilty knowing that it was originally meant for his dad, but also felt a little special that Sam chose to give it to him instead. Dean didn't feel special very often.

"Dean, we should return those gifts," Sam said.

"What gifts?" Dean asked.

"The ones you stole."

"OK. We'll sneak them back tonight," Dean agreed.

"No, we have to do it now. Some kid didn't get her Christmas presents," Sam argued.

"Sam, we'll get in trouble if we get caught and we're a lot more likely to get caught in the day time," Dean pointed out.

"Just because our Christmas sucked doesn't mean everyone's has to," Sam said.

Dean realized that despite his efforts, Sam still didn't actually get any Christmas presents. On top of that he had just found out about the supernatural, Dean had told him there was no Santa, and Dad had broken his promise. Sam's Christmas had truly sucked. And he was only eight.

Dean remembered his eighth Christmas. Sammy was four so Dad was around more often. He had taken them to Pastor Jim's for a whole week for Christmas. They had gone to church and seen the Christmas pageant. They had even gone caroling afterwards. Some women in Pastor Jim's congregation had made Christmas cookies and hot chocolate for them. But the best part of all was that Dad had actually stayed with them the whole time. He hadn't even seemed distracted. It was the last time Dean remembered that happening and he was sure Sam probably only had a very vague memory of that Christmas.

"I'll just do it myself," Sam was saying as he gathered up the two gifts. "If they catch me they'll go easy on me because I'm just a kid."

Dean rolled his eyes. "No way. If you insist on this madness, I'll go with you. If you get caught Dad will kill me when he gets back."

"If he ever comes back," Sam muttered under his breath.

Dean heard him but decided to ignore him. He knew Sam would get over it, but right now his feelings were just too hurt that Dad would let him down like that.

Dean bundled Sam up in his hand me down jacket and grabbed his own jacket. They walked down the street towards the house.

"OK, we're going to put these presents on the front steps and run away," Dean instructed.

"Shouldn't we ring the bell, so they know they're out there?" Sam asked.

"No, Sam. You don't run fast enough. We'll get caught."

"Somebody else might come along and steal them again," Sam complained.

"This is the best we can do," Dean said firmly.

"Fine," Sam responded, petulantly.

They snuck up to the front steps and laid the gifts down. They were just about to turn to run when the door opened and a man stood there.

"We found those in the street and thought maybe they came from here," Sam said.

Dean rolled his eyes. That was the stupidest lie he had ever heard. Not that he had a better one.

"Run, Sam!" Dean yelled and they both started to run away. Sam tripped on his shoelace though. The man came out of his house and started approaching Sam and Dean knew he had no choice but to return. "Stay away from my brother," he warned.

The man looked over at him and smiled. "I'm not going to hurt him." He knelt down next to Sam. "Are you OK?"

"Yeah," Sam answered, looking down at the ground. He knew Dean was mad at him for getting them caught and he knew the man was mad at him for stealing.

Dean stood there, not sure what to do. He had never taken on a grown man before, and besides, that man wasn't really threatening Sam. He would probably just call the cops, which he had every right to do. He should have never let Sam talk him into this. OK, he admitted to himself, he should have never stolen the presents—especially since they turned out to be for girls.

"You're bleeding," the man was saying.

That got Dean's attention. Was Sam hurt? He looked down. Sam had torn his pants and skinned his knee.

"Come inside and we'll clean that up and get a Band-aid on it," the man said and held out his hand for Sam to take.

"We should just go home," Dean said. He figured now was their best time for escape. This guy seemed to feel bad for Sam getting hurt.

"What are your names?" the man asked while Sam was getting to his feet.

Dean had no intention of answering that question. At least not honestly. But Sam beat him to the punch. "I'm Sam and that's my brother, Dean."

Dean rolled his eyes. He was going to have to give Sam lessons on how to act and what to say to people in certain situations. Oh well, at least he hadn't included a last name.

As Sam and the man started walking towards the house, Dean grabbed for Sam's hand. "Really, we should go."

"Don't be silly," the man said.

Dean was starting to get nervous, but suddenly a woman in an apron appeared in the doorway.

"What's going on, Bob?"

"These boys were just returning Amy's gifts. The little one hurt himself."

"Oh no," the woman said and came out to inspect Sam's wound herself. "That should be cleaned."

"I know. I told them that, but they seem to want to leave."

"Don't be silly. Come in. Have you eaten dinner yet? We were just about to sit down and we have plenty of food."

Dean looked at the woman. She had long blonde hair just like their mother and looked a bit like her. "No, we haven't eaten yet," he answered.

Sam was surprised when Dean said that. He could tell Dean had been trying to get away, but suddenly it looked like he wanted to stay.


	2. Pies, Pies, Glorious Pies

"Well, come on in, then."

They went inside. "My name is Cassie and this is my husband, Bob," the woman said when they were all in the house.

"I'm Dean and that's my little brother, Sam."

"Well, I'll just take him into the bathroom and clean him up and disinfect him. Could you help Bob set the table?"

"Sure," Dean answered. He usually didn't trust anyone besides him and his dad with Sam, but there was something about Cassie that just made him trust her. Cassie smiled at him and led Sam off.

Dean helped Bob set the table. He didn't quite feel the same way about Bob as he did Cassie. Bob made him feel a little nervous.

"How many plates?" Dean asked.

"Four," Bob said.

Dean counted out the plates and put them around the table. Then he realized what was bothering him. "Where's your daughter?"

"Amy is my daughter with my first wife. I have her tomorrow."

Cassie and Sam returned then and Sam said, "So, we didn't ruin her Christmas?"

"Nope. We'll have the gifts rewrapped and she'll never know they were gone," Bob answered.

"That's good," Sam said.

"Why did you steal them in the first place?" Cassie asked.

Dean answered quickly, before Sam could. "My Dad got laid off a couple of months ago and couldn't afford gifts. He just started a new job with the power company this week, so he had to work today. I figured I could steal a couple gifts so Sam wouldn't have to go without."

"Well, sounds like he's going to miss Christmas dinner. How about when we're done I send some leftovers home with you?" Cassie offered.

"That's OK. You don't have to," Dean said. Either his father wouldn't return in time to eat them before they went bad, or he'd want to know where they got them. And he wouldn't like the answer.

"Well, we'll talk about it after we eat," Bob said and indicated that everyone should sit.

Cassie brought the food out. Dishes and dishes. Sam had never seen so much food in his life.

"All this for just the two of you?" Sam asked, incredulous.

"Sam!" Dean kicked him under the table.

Cassie laughed. "I'm from a big family and never got used to cooking holiday meals for less than a crowd. We take the leftovers to a soup kitchen, afterwards, so it doesn't go to waste."

They had turkey, stuffing, boiled potatoes, sweet potatoes, cole slaw, turnips, squash, boiled onions, cranberry sauce, pickles, rolls, and Jello-fruit salad. They were largely silent while they ate, nobody sure what to talk about. Sam and Dean complimented every dish, though. They had never had food so good.

"Thank you, boys. You're making me blush. I'm not used to such praise."

"Sorry, Cassie. You're a great cook. Guess I just started taking it for granted," Bob said, sheepishly.

"Who wants pie?"Cassie asked when they had finished with the main meal.

Sam's eyes got huge. "I don't think I could eat another bite."

"I insist. We have apple, pecan, chocolate or lemon meringue."

"I'll have apple, please," Dean said. He would never turn down pie.

"Chocolate," Sam said, really not knowing how he would eat any of it.

Cassie bustled off into the kitchen and reappeared moments later with four plates of pie. She was having pecan and Bob was having lemon meringue. Dean joyously dug into his and was finished before Sam had taken a bite.

"Sam, eat your pie," Cassie said with a smile between bites.

"I don't think I can," Sam answered. He was really full.

"EAT IT!" Cassie screamed, and jumped up, going over to Sam. She picked up his fork and attempted to force feed him.

"Hey!" Dean yelled. He stood up so he could grab Sam and leave, but all he managed to do was fall to the floor. He could feel himself losing consciousness.

"Dean?" Sam asked, worried.

"Sam, run," Dean said and lost his battle to stay awake.

"Eat your pie," Cassie said.

Sam knew he was always supposed to listen to Dean so he got up and ran. Bob caught up to him before he made it to the door. He grabbed Sam and carried him back to his seat.

"Let me go," Sam yelled.

"Now, my wife went to a lot of trouble to make this pie and you're going to eat it," Bob said.

Cassie lifted his fork up to his mouth. Sam shut his mouth firmly and turned his head away. Bob grabbed his chin and forced his mouth open and turned him back in the right direction. Cassie stuck the fork in and Bob forced his mouth closed. He then covered Sam's mouth and nose, so Sam had no choice but to swallow. This operation was repeated until the pie was eaten.

"Now, was that so bad?" Cassie asked.

"What are you going to do to us?" Sam asked.

"You'll see when you wake up," Bob answered, letting go of Sam.

Sam got up to run, but ended up collapsing, practically on top of Dean.

SSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Dean woke up feeling groggy. He rolled over and sat up in confusion. He didn't recognize this room. "Sam?" he called.

He didn't get any answer.

Dean got up and went to check the bathroom. It was empty. He heard the sound of the door opening. Dean turned towards the sound hoping for his brother. It was his dad.

"I thought you were going to be away for a week?" Dean said.

"Don't start with me, Dean. I tried to get back in time."

"In time for what?"

"Christmas. Like I promised, Sam. Speaking of Sam, where is he?" At first, John had assumed he was in the bathroom, but now that Dean had shifted a little, he could see that wasn't the case.

"I don't know. I just woke up and he's gone," Dean said, beginning to panic.

"When did you last see him?" John asked, trying to remain calm.

"Right before you left," Dean answered.

"What?" John roared. "I left over a week ago."

"What are you talking about? You left last night," Dean answered.

A/N First of all, I just wanted to say that I had originally just intended to write a one-shot where the boys got invited in and had a nice Christmas, but apparently that just goes against me, because clearly that wasn't what happened.

Also, for anyone that thinks that Christmas Dinner was a bit over-the-top for four people, I remember one time when I was in high school, my dad took my grandmother to New Jersey to visit one of her sisters for Thanksgiving and my sister didn't come home from college that year. That left me, my mom and my other grandparents. We had all that food, except for maybe the rolls, and yes, my grandmother made four pies for four people.


	3. Lost Year

"What's the last thing you remember, Dean?" John tried once again to achieve some semblance of calm.

"We were having Christmas dinner and you told me to put the Boston Market buckets in the fridge so Sam and I could eat the leftovers for the next couple of days and that you would be back in a week," Dean said as he looked around. "But the room was different."

John was confused to say the least. Yesterday had been Christmas but he hadn't been here.

"Dad, we have to find Sammy. He's only seven," Dean said in a panicked voice.

That stopped John short. That was the kind of mistake he would make, not Dean. "He's eight, Dean. Not seven."

"Dad, he's seven. He was born in 1983 and it's 1990. I might not be the smartest kid in school, but I can keep track of my brother's age. Besides, that's not what's important here."

"It's 1991, Dean." How had Dean lost a year? If he couldn't remember the time when Sam had disappeared, it was going to make it a lot harder to find him.

"What? Are you messing with me?" Dean asked. He could just imagine Sammy and his Dad getting together to play this joke on him.

"Look in the mirror, Dean," John instructed. Dean had grown two inches in the past year and his hair was a lot shorter. He should see a difference.

"What the hell?" Dean yelled when he looked in the mirror.

"Look, Dean. I know you're freaked out, but Sammy seems to be missing. We have to find him and I need your help. Can you calm down for me?" John asked.

Dean took a deep breath. If Sammy needed him to be calm, he would be calm. "Yes, sir," he said.

John looked around the room, trying to ascertain what was different since he left. He saw an amulet handing around Dean's neck. "Where did you get that?" he asked, pointing to it.

Dean looked down. "I don't know."

Yeah, this was going to go great. "Let me see it." Dean took it off and handed it over. John had no idea what it was, if it had to do with Sam's disappearance, if it was an amulet for good or evil. "I'm going to hang onto this until we can ask Bobby if he knows what it is," John said and tucked it into his pocket.

He looked and he saw discarded newspaper and some wrapping paper. "Where'd the wrapping paper come from?" he asked.

"You got us gifts last night, remember?" Dean said.

John was getting very frustrated. Then he remembered that Bobby could hypnotize people to remember things they had forgotten. He called him.

"Hello?" Bobby answered.

"Bobby, it's John. Sam's missing and Dean seems to have amnesia. Can you come down here and help us out?"

"Sure thing, John. I'll be there in a few hours."

In the meantime, John decided to take Sam's picture around and see if anybody had seen him. He told Dean to wait in the room.

SSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Sam woke up in a small windowless room filled with flowers. As he remembered the events of the night before he sat up. "Dean?" he called. He didn't get any response. He got up and noticed he was no longer wearing his clothes, but a flowing, white robe and sandals.

He walked over to the door and found it locked. "Oh, you're awake," Cassie said as she entered the room. "Did you sleep well?"

"Where's Dean?" he asked.

"He's fine. We brought him back to your hotel room," Cassie answered.

Sam was glad Dean was safe, but at the same time, selfishly wished that he was here, too. Sam was scared and Dean always made him feel protected.

"Where are we?" Sam asked, looking past Cassie out the window in the other room. It was December, but it sure didn't look like it.

"Fairy Land," Cassie said.

"Fairy Land?" Sam repeated.

"Yes. Bob and I are fairies and this is where we live. It's in a different dimension, so humans can't find us." She said humans like it was a bad word.

"Why did you bring me here?"

"All fairies have a certain job. Ours is to provide an aphrodisiac to the Fairy King."

Sam had no idea what an aphrodisiac was, but didn't want to look stupid, so instead he asked, "What does that have to do with me?"

"Well, this is really disgusting, which is why only the king wants it, but the aphrodisiac is the urine from a human child. So, every time you pee, use a jar," she said pointing at a whole supply.

"For how long?" Sam asked.

"Until you're 18. Then we'll bring you back to the mortal realm."

"I'll be stuck here for ten years?" Sam asked.

"Yes. And don't try to escape. Fairies hate humans and if you come into contact with any but us, you'll be killed." Cassie left Sam a tray with breakfast and shut and locked the door behind her. Sam sat down on the bed and cried.

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

"Any luck?" Dean asked when his dad came back.

"No. Nobody's seen him."

There was a knock at the door and John opened it, admitting Bobby.

"Any idea what happened?" he asked without greeting.

"None. I've been gone for a little over a week and Dean can't remember anything since last year."

"Sorry, Dad," Dean said, knowing that this was all his fault. If only he could remember what happened to Sam.

Bobby expected John to reassure Dean, but all he did was pull something out of his pocket. "Dean was wearing this when I got back. Any idea what it is?"

Bobby looked at it. "Last month when you were at my place, Sam asked if I had something he could give you for Christmas. This is what I gave him."

Nobody was sure how it came to be around Dean's neck. Bobby thought that Sam had changed his mind and given it to Dean. John thought maybe Sam and Dean had had a fight over it. Dean didn't know what to think.

"Could it have anything to do with Sam's disappearance or Dean's amnesia?" John asked.

"Come on, John, do you really think I would give you something dangerous. It just burns gremlins if they touch it. Pretty useless, actually."

"I think I'm going to have to report him missing with the police. We've got nothing. There's no sulphur or EMF or anything else I could find here."

"That's probably your best bet, John," Bobby agreed. They all hated cops, but they would do anything for Sam.


	4. Missing Person's Report

Bob came in to collect Sam's urine. Sam had had ideas of his own, though, and not gone in the jars. Of course, there was no bathroom in the room, so that meant he had gone on the floor. Six times. Bob was not happy when he walked in.

"You're going to clean that up," he said as he grabbed Sam by the scruff of his neck. It had taken them two weeks to get another child after Amy had turned 18, and the king was running low. He would not be happy to have to wait any longer.

"You clean it up," Sam replied, acting braver than he felt.

Bob kept one hand firmly on the back of Sam's neck and hit him hard across the face with the other. "You'll do what I tell you boy," he said. He pushed Sam to the floor and pushed his face in one of the urine puddles. "Lap that up," he said.

When Sam didn't lap it up, Bob pushed his head down even further until his nose was in the puddle and held it there. "You're not moving, until it's cleaned."

Sam began lapping. He was almost sick several times before he got all the puddles up. "Are you going to pull that again?"

"No," Sam said. He was not going to have to lap that stuff again.

"Good," Bob said and left.

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

John, Bobby, and Dean walked into the police station and walked up to the next. "I need to report my missing son," John said.

"How old?' the officer asked.

"8 and a half," John answered.

"How long has he been missing?"

John hesitated. He had no idea. "Since last night," he said. That was his best bet.

"And you're just now reporting him?"

"I've been looking for him," John said defensively.

"Where did you last see him?" the officer said, for the moment ignoring the neglect.

John was beginning to see what a bad idea this was. "I had to leave town last night. My other son was watching him."

"This him?" the officer asked, indicating Dean.

"Yes, but he seems to have some sort of amnesia and can't remember anything past last year."

"Have you taken him to a doctor?" the officer asked concerned. If the father had been worried about his older son, it might explain why he hadn't yet reported his other son missing.

"No," John admitted.

"Where is their mother?" the officer asked.

"She died when Sam was a baby."

The officer sighed. He was going to have to call Child Services. This man was clearly neglecting his children. "I'm going to go get the missing person's form."

He went back to the office and called Child Services and then grabbed the form he needed. "What does your son look like?"

"He has brown hair, brown eyes and he's about 4 feet tall," John answered.

"Do you have a recent picture?"

John took out the picture he had been showing. "It's about six months old." It had all three of them in it. They were all sitting on the hood of the Impala with Sam in his lap.

"Nothing more recent?"

"I'm afraid I'm not much of a photographer," John admitted.

A woman came in. "My name is Linda and I'm from Children's Services," she introduced herself to the officer.

"This is the family I've been telling you about. I'll leave you alone, while I go put out an APB."

"Which of you is the father?" she asked looking from John to Bobby.

"I am," John answered.

"And you are?" she asked Bobby.

"Family friend."

"Dean," she said bending down. "I understand you can't remember anything for the last year. Why do you think that is?"

John rolled his eyes. How was he supposed to know why he couldn't remember when he couldn't remember?

"I don't know," Dean said.

John was glad he didn't add a smart-alec response to that. But, at the same time, he was worried by his lack of one. It wasn't like him. He must be worried about Sam.

"Where were you last night, Mr. Winchester?" she asked John.

"I was out of town," he answered.

"That's not very specific."

"I was in Lincoln."

"Doing what?"

Cleansing a house of a poltergeist. Yeah, that would go over well. "I'm a traveling salesman."

"And you were selling Christmas night? Did you spend the day with your children?"

"Yes," John lied.

"What did you do?"

"Normal Christmas stuff. Look, I don't have time for this. My son is missing," John spat out angrily.

"And the police are looking for him. My job is to find out why he is missing. And why your other son can't remember anything. I'd like to take him to the doctor's now."

"No," John said. "I'll take him."

"I don't think you understand. You don't really have a say in this. If you would cooperate, it would probably be less scary for Dean."

John sighed. "Fine," he said. As Linda led Dean out the door, John realized that they weren't going to give him back. He heard his own story in his head and it sounded ridiculous. They probably thought Dean was either traumatized by something John did, or was pretending so he didn't have to tell on his father.

"We have to get him before she takes him," John whispered to Bobby.

"What are you thinking?" Bobby asked.

"Your car's outside. Grab him and run. We'll get him to a doctor somewhere else. I've already lost one of my sons. I can't lose the other one."

John and Bobby walked outside. Linda was leading Dean to her car, which was luckily, parked right next to Bobby's car. Bobby went straight for his car. John ran up and grabbed Dean's arm. "Come on, Dean," he said and Dean broke away from Linda and ran over to Bobby with his father. They both jumped in the back seat and Bobby took off. Linda started running inside and screaming.


	5. Keeping Dean

"Maybe this wasn't so smart," Bobby observed.

"There's an abandoned barn about 2 miles away," John recalled. "Why don't you get out here and high-tail it back to the hotel before they can get there and get my car, and come pick us up."

"OK," Bobby agreed.

Bobby turned a corner and he and John both jumped out simultaneously. John quickly handed Bobby his keys as he jumped into the front seat, and Bobby ran into the woods to take a shortcut to the hotel. John and Dean continued onto the barn and once there, drove inside and waited impatiently for Bobby.

"What about Sam?" Dean asked.

"Dean, I've got no leads on Sam. We're going to have to leave it to the police." John thought that this probably had something to do with whatever killed Mary. She was killed in Sam's nursery and John had always been afraid that whatever it was would come back for Sam someday. It seemed that time was now. They would just keep looking for that thing. It was the best way to find Sam.

They heard Bobby pull up a few minutes later and ran out to meet him. They hopped in the car and drove off. "Aren't they going to know this is your car?" Bobby asked.

"Not registered in my name and I don't think I was there long enough for the hotel manager to know what I drive. No security cameras there. Usually the way I like it, but this time I wish there were so maybe we could have seen what took Sam."

"Sorry, Dad," Dean said.

"Not your fault," John said.

Bobby sighed in relief. He was afraid that that idgit was going to blame Dean. They drove to Bobby's and John doubled up his efforts on finding Mary's killer in an effort to find Sam.

May 5, 2001

Sam woke up slowly. The first thing he noticed was that he was outside. Why was he outside. "Hey, buddy, you can't sleep here," a cop was bonking him with his baton.

"Where am I?" Sam asked.

"Are you drunk?"

Drunk? What was he talking about? His Dad got drunk sometimes, but he was only 7. He was pretty sure 7-year-olds weren't supposed to be drunk. "No."

"You need to leave now."

Sam looked around and didn't recognize the park he was in. "I don't know where I am."

"You're in Smith Park in Sioux Falls, South Dakota," the officer answered.

Sioux Falls? Sam was pretty sure that was where Uncle Bobby lived. "Can you call my Uncle Bobby?" Sam asked.

"Call him yourself," the officer said and walked off. He would come back in ten minutes and make sure he had moved on.

Sam got up and looked down. Something felt weird. The ground wasn't usually that far away was it? He shrugged and went to find a pay phone. He found one but realized he didn't have any change or know Uncle Bobby's phone number off the top of his head. Luckily there was a phone book attached to the pay phone and he remembered how to make a collect call.

"I'd like to make a collect call from Sam Winchester," he told the operator when she answered the phone.

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

"Singer Salvage," Bobby answered the phone.

"I have a collect call from Sam Winchester."

Bobby almost dropped the phone. It couldn't be possible. Sam had been missing for ten years. "I'll accept the charges," he said. He didn't know if this was Sam, or some evil supernatural creature, but he wasn't going to take the chance.

"I'll accept the charges," he said.

"Uncle Bobby, I'm in Sioux Falls, but I'm lost," Sam said in a rush as soon as he heard Bobby's voice.

"OK, what do you see?" Bobby asked.

Sam told him the name of the park the officer had told him and Bobby told him he would come and get him. Sam breathed a sigh of relief and sat down near the phone to wait.

Bobby took a quick minute to call John before going to get Sam. He got his voice mail. "John, it's Bobby. You need to get here ASAP and call me when you're on your way. I mean it. Drop everything." He hung up. He didn't want to mention Sam in case it wasn't him, but if it was him, he wanted John and Dean here as soon as possible.

"Dean, I got a message from Bobby. He wants us to go there right away," John said.

"What's up?" Dean asked.

"He didn't say, but he sounded like it was real important."

"OK," Dean said disinterestedly.

John looked at his son and sighed. They had been trying to figure out what had killed Mary and didn't even know that much. Dean had never recovered his missing year, and had assumed that something he had done had caused, or at least allowed, Sam to go missing. He had lost any last remaining traces of childhood then, and had gone through life ever since on auto pilot. He followed orders and refused to make any decisions on his own. John didn't know how Dean would ever survive on his own. He decided not to worry about that right now. They had to check on Bobby.

Dean thought about Bobby and how he was like a second father to him. He didn't deserve Dad and Bobby. He wasn't sure how, but he knew if it weren't for him, Sammy would still be around. He thought about Sam every day. Was he still alive? Was he OK? Dean realized that he would be 18 today. Sam had always been shorter than Dean and he wondered if he still was. He wondered if he would ever know.

Sam looked up as a car pulled up. "Uncle Bobby," he yelled and ran up and hugged him.

Bobby stared at him in amazement. He couldn't believe how big Sam had gotten. He was a lot taller than him. But he looked so pale. Like he hadn't seen daylight in years.

"Where have you been, Sam?" Bobby asked.

"I don't remember."

"What is the last thing you remember?" Bobby asked as they got in his car.

Sam thought about it. "It was Christmas and Dad was leaving on business."

"When you were 7?" Bobby confirmed.

"Yeah. How old am I now?" Sam asked. He could tell he was older. He was taller. His voice sounded different and he just didn't feel like a little kid.

"18," Bobby said.

"I've been gone for 11 years?" Sam asked.

Bobby didn't answer. Didn't know how much he should tell Sam. "Are you hungry?"

Sam nodded. "Do you know where Dad and Dean are?"

"I called and left a message with your Dad. When we get back to the house I'll check to see if he called back." John had kept telling him he needed a cell phone, but he hadn't gotten around to it yet. He decided that was next on his to-do list.

"Where have I been?" Sam asked.

Bobby smiled. He had forgotten how many questions Sam could ask in a two minute period. "I don't know."

"Is Dad mad at me?"

"No," Bobby said firmly.

When they got back to the house they found a message from John that said that he was on his way and should be there in about two hours. They had been close by.

"Want a grilled cheese sandwich?" Bobby asked, remembering that used to be Sam's favorite lunch.

"Thanks," Sam said.

Bobby made him his sandwich and wondered what they were going to do with Sam. He seemed to be fully mentally developed. Didn't act like a 7 year old, which was good, but he couldn't be sure how much education he had had or retained. He could do simple arithmetic, remembering how he thought he had been gone 11 years, but he had been able to do that at 7.

"Here you go, Kid," he said, putting the sandwich in front of him. Sam dug in like he hadn't seen food in 10 years.

"Want another one?" Bobby asked, when Sam had finished the sandwich in like 2 seconds.

"No, thanks," Sam said. "I'm tired."

"Why don't you go upstairs and take a nap? Do you remember where the bedroom is?"

Sam nodded.

"OK. Let me know if you need anything."

Sam trudged upstairs. Bobby watched him go and remembered Sam trudging the exact same way when he was tired when he was a kid. Bobby thought that he acted a lot like Sam, but didn't know if that was wishful thinking and didn't know how to find out for sure.


	6. Afraid to Hope

Dean had been sleeping in the car while John was driving. He woke up about fifteen minutes away from Bobby's.

"We're almost there," John said.

Dean just nodded. He turned to look out the window. If Sam were here, they wouldn't be going to Bobby's. They would have been celebrating his birthday. Dean would have made sure of it. 18 was a big one.

"What are you thinking about, Dean?" John asked. Dean was even more withdrawn than usual today.

"Sam's birthday," Dean said, before he could stop himself. He never mentioned Sam to his dad. Didn't want to remind him that he had a reason to hate him.

John hadn't realized the date. He remembered that it was on Sam's 15th birthday that he had gotten drunk and admitted to himself, they were never going to find him. He hadn't been able to bring himself to say that to Dean, though. Maybe it was better if he did. It was time to let Sam go.

"Dean, I think maybe we need to get on with our lives," John started.

"What do you mean?" Dean asked.

"Sam's gone and I don't think he's coming back," John admitted. He was just pulling up in Bobby's. Dean grabbed the door handle and bolted out of the car. He would not let his father say this. He would not give up on Sam. Never.

"Dean, get back here," John called. The last thing he needed was Bobby yelling at him for upsetting Dean.

Bobby came out when he heard the car and saw Dean running up to the door. "What's wrong?" he asked.

Dean just brushed past him. He wasn't sure he could say the words right now. Nobody was giving up on Sam as long as he had any say in the matter.

"Hey, Bobby," John said, walking up.

"What's wrong with Dean?" Bobby asked.

John sighed. He always did the best he could with Dean, but Bobby would invariably find fault with him for something. "I just suggested that maybe we need to get on with our lives, that Sam's not coming back. I don't want to give up on Sam, but look at what it's doing to Dean."

"I think Sam's upstairs," Bobby said.

"What?" John asked.

Bobby relayed the events of the day as John listened, afraid to believe.

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Dean went straight upstairs to the room he used to share with Sam. He had never went into it after Sam disappeared. It was their room together, it hadn't seemed right. But today, he wanted to feel close to Sam. He pushed open the door and saw some guy sleeping Sam's bed.

"Hey!" Dean yelled. He realized that he hadn't really had a right to do that. Obviously Bobby had allowed this guy to sleep up here and it was his house, but Dean was mad. That was Sam's bed.

Sam woke up to a loud yell and rolled over to see an angry-looking young man staring at him. "I'm sorry," he said. For what, he wasn't sure, but he thought maybe that was the appropriate response.

"No, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell," Dean apologized.

"That's OK. Who are you?" Sam asked.

"My name's Dean."

"Dean Winchester?" Sam asked.

"Yeah," Dean said, figuring Bobby had told this kid about him. He was about to ask the kid his name, but before he could he had jumped out of bed and was hugging Dean.

"What the hell?" he asked and tried to break free.

"Dean, it's me," Sam said.

"Who's me?" Dean asked.

"Sam."

Dean pulled back and looked at the kid. There was no way this could be his little brother. He was taller than him. But those did look like Sam's eyes. He just didn't know what to think. He was afraid to hope. He turned around and ran down the stairs. "Bobby!"

Bobby and John came inside. Dean was barreling down the stairs and Sam was following shyly after him. He must have made Dean mad, but he wasn't sure how.

"Bobby, is that really Sam?" Dean asked, holding his breath.

"I think so. While he was sleeping I poured some salt on him and touched him with silver. Nothing happened."

Sam wondered what he was talking about. Salt, silver? But, he recognized the other man with him. "Dad!" he yelled and ran up to him and hugged him.

"Sammy," John said, through tears. He had given up on Sam. Now he just hugged him. He didn't know where Sam had been, or what he had been through. But they were all together again. With Sam back, Dean could let go of the guilt.

Dean watched from the stairs. Sam was back, but he had lost ten years of his life. His whole childhood was gone.

"Is there any way to find out what happened to him, Bobby?" Dean asked.

"Not that I know of," Bobby answered.

"Were these the clothes he was wearing when you found him?" John asked.

Sam was getting sick of everybody talking about him like he wasn't there. "Yes," he answered before Bobby could.

Dean smiled. Even as a little kid Sam was stubborn and didn't want to be left out of anything. "What's the first thing you remember from today?"

"I woke up in a park. I was sleeping on a bench and a cop came by and woke me up and told me to move on," Sam said. He left out the part about being confused and realizing he was older. He would sound like a moron.

"Are there any tags in your clothes?" John asked, reaching around to check. Great. Stuff you could get at any Wal-Mart. He sighed. That would be no help.

"Anything in your pockets?" Bobby asked.

Sam turned out all his pockets. They were empty.

"Sam, you look kind of pale. Are you feeling OK?" John asked, concerned.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"I don't think he got a lot of sun wherever he was," Bobby said.

"Well, then, why don't you two boys take a walk while Bobby and I talk," John suggested. He had a lot to decide about Sam and didn't want Sam to overhear or Dean to start arguing with him before he'd even decided anything.

Dean gave him a dark look, knowing they were going to be deciding Sam's future, but Sam did look like he needed some sun and exercise and he probably shouldn't be alone. "OK, come on, Sam."

They walked out and started towards town. "Want a root beer float?" Dean asked, remembering that Bobby always got him one when they came to town. John had never allowed junk food, not wanting to have to figure out how to pay for dentists or doctors.

"Only Uncle Bobby is allowed to give me those," Sam said. Dean remembered how Bobby had told Sam that he was allowed to when Sam had protested that root beer floats were against the rules.

"It's OK. We're old enough to do what we want now," Dean assured Sam.

Sam looked at his feet. It was so weird. He didn't know how to be in charge of himself and make his own decisions. When Dean saw the look on his face he could have kicked himself. "It's OK, though. If you ever have any questions, you just ask me or Dad, or Uncle Bobby and we'll help you."

"Do I have to go out and get a job now?" Sam recalled hearing someone yelling at someone else at a restaurant, saying something like now that you're 18, I expect you to move out, get a job and support yourself. Sam knew he was 18 now, but he didn't know how to do anything.

"No, don't worry about it," Dean said, wondering what they were going to do with him. Was Dad planning on training him to be a hunter? He was so pasty and looked kind of frail.


	7. Life Choices

"Bobby, what do you think I should do?" John asked Bobby. He normally didn't ask anybody for advice, but he was in way over his head on this one.

"About what?" Bobby asked.

"Sam."

"I know that, you idgit. I meant specifically."

"Should I tell him about hunting, first of all?"

"Honestly. I don't think you should, John. I know that he doesn't remember what's happened, but that doesn't mean he won't have any psychological problems from whatever it was. Plus, he's lost 11 years of his life. He's going to have to play some pretty major catch up. It's not fair to him to add the stress of hunting to that."

"You're right. That was what I was thinking. But what do I do with him, then?"

"If he wants, I'll give Dean a job here with me. We can let Sam live here and get him some tutors so he get his GED. Maybe go to Community College and train for a job."

"I need Dean to help me with hunting," John said.

"Are you kidding me? For once in your life, put your boys first. Let Dean make the decision. If Dean wants to leave Sam here and go hunting with you that's fine, but he's got to make up his own mind. I've been watching him since Sam disappeared. I've seen how he's afraid to make his own decisions and you've let him depend completely on you. It's not healthy. With what we do, you're not going to be around forever. They both need to learn to be self-sufficient."

"Fine. Let's wait until morning to ask, though. Dean's happy for the first time and I don't know if this will stress him out. I get what you're saying about making him stand on his own two feet, but I think you'll agree he could use one happy night."

"Yeah. I definitely agree with that," Bobby said.

Sam and Dean chose that moment to return. "How was your walk?" John asked.

"We didn't get very far. Sam got tired," Dean said.

"You just had a nap," Bobby said.

"Not that kind of tired," Sam said. "My legs hurt."

"You were only gone 10 minutes," John said.

Sam hung his head, recognizing that his father was disappointed in him. "Sorry."

"It's OK, Sam," Dean said. "What's for supper, Bobby?"

"All you ever think about is your stomach," Bobby grumbled.

"Can we have pizza?" Sam asked. He wasn't sure why, but he felt like he hadn't had pizza in a very long time.

"Sure," Bobby said. He didn't feel like cooking anyway.

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

"Dean, I'm not going to teach Sam about hunting," John told Dean. Sam was still sleeping and Bobby was in the kitchen making breakfast.

"OK," Dean said. That was fine with him. He wasn't sure Sam could handle it.

"I'm going to leave him here with Bobby," Dean opened his mouth, but before he could say anything, John continued, "You can either come with me, or stay here and work with Bobby. I'm fine with either decision."

Dean wasn't sure what to do. He couldn't remember the last time he made a decision. He was always afraid to because as far as he knew, it was some stupid decision of his that got Sam in trouble.

John could see how Dean was struggling, but remembered Bobby's words of not making decisions for him. He decided to do the next best thing. "I'll let you think about it."

"What did he decide?" Bobby asked as John joined him in the kitchen.

"Nothing yet," John admitted.

"John, he has to," Bobby almost yelled, but remembered Sam was still sleeping and he didn't want Dean to overhear either.

"I know, Bobby, but maybe it might be easier for him to make the first decision he's made in ten years without me watching him."

"You're right," Bobby admitted.

John laughed. "I don't hear that from you too often."

"Don't get used to it."

"Morning."

They turned around to see Sam in the doorway. "Morning, son."

John wasn't going to tell Sam that he was staying here until he knew what Dean was doing. Give him all the information at once. Besides, he didn't want Sam to make the decision for Dean either. He had to do this on his own.

"Dad, I've decided," Dean said.

"Excuse us," John said to Sam and Bobby and they went outside.

"Well?"

"I've spent the last ten years feeling guilty for something I can't remember. It's not your fault, it's not Sam's fault, and it may not even be my fault. But, I'm not going to hunt with you anymore, and I'm not going to stay here with Sam. I'm going to go do my own thing."

John hadn't been expecting that. "What?"

"I don't know, Dad, but it's like I've been on autopilot. Not even. I've been on auto-co-pilot. Normal families don't stick together forever. They don't all go into business together. You should hunt. I'll go be a mechanic or maybe something else, and Sammy will get his degree and go to college. I know I only remember him as a 7 year old, but he was smart, wasn't he?"

"He sure was," John agreed. He hugged Dean and went in to say good-bye to Sam. When he came back Dean was gone.

8 years later

"Sam , I'm so proud of you. Graduating from college after the late start you got," Bobby said as Sam got ready for the graduation ceremony.

"Do you think Dad and Dean will come?" he asked.

"They said they would."

For the last 8 years they had all talked on the phone at least once a week and got together on holidays. Sam had been scared at first. Especially when he had had to leave Bobby's to go away to college, but now he felt like a normal functioning adult.

"Hey, Sam. How do I look in my gown?"

"You look great, Jess," Sam said. He had asked Jessica to marry him the night before and she said yes. He planned on telling everyone at dinner after the ceremony.

"Hey, there's the graduate," Dean said as he came in the room, followed by their father.

"You guys made it," Sam said.

"Who's this?" Dean asked, making a beeline for Jess.

"This is my girlfriend, Jessica," Sam said.

"You are way out of my brother's league," Dean said with his usual smirk.

Sam rolled his eyes.

"Dean, leave your brother's girlfriend alone," John admonished.

"We're going to be late," Jessica said. She grabbed Sam's hand and they left the others standing there.

"I can't believe there was a time when we thought he was dead and now he's graduating from college," John said.

"Do you think we'll ever know where he was all those years?" Dean asked.

"No. But I don't think it matters. He's back now and we're probably a more normal family now than we would have been otherwise," John said.

"Winchesters normal? Ha," Bobby said.

The End


End file.
